


Love Story

by drowninginwords



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: AU, F/M, Kingdoms, Love Story, Princess AU, percabeth
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-18
Updated: 2016-02-13
Packaged: 2018-04-26 20:43:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5019775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drowninginwords/pseuds/drowninginwords
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Annabeth is the heir of Athena, queen of a major kingdom.<br/>On her seventeenth birthday, she must marry, but there is no one she'd want to spend her life with. That is until a boy in dirty clothes and messy black hair shows up at a dance. </p><p>Inspired by Taylor Swift's song Love Story, characters belong to Rick Riordan.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Annabeth was woken by a firm knock on the wooden door that led to her chamber. She sat up in her bed and yawned. She shook her head a couple of times, trying to get rid of the sleepiness, and said with clear voice, "Come in." She had learned years ago that you had to sound professional at all times, no matter if it was awfully early in the morning or way too late in the evening. Right now it was definitely the earlier, Annabeth had not gotten many hours sleep. Maybe she shouldn’t have stayed up late finishing that book after all.  
The door creaked open, and Queen Athena came in, already in a simple but beautiful day dress. She walked over to Annabeth and smiled so sweetly Annabeth knew she was about to ask for something. Annabeth didn't particularly like these 'favors' as Athena liked to call them, they usually involved acting like a princess, and Annabeth had never felt like one. 

"Get dressed and come down to the dining room, will you?" Annabeth's mother asked and turned around to walk out. Before she reached the door she peeked over her shoulder too make sure Annabeth was getting out of bed, and said, "We have some things to discuss", in a tone that implied everything were already decided, but Annabeth needed to officially agree. 

This was the point were Annabeth was supposed to (at least according to her mother) have maids so she didn't have to get dressed by herself, but she had always preferred doing thing on her own, so she picked out a dress and slid it over her head. She let her blonde curls be, she had finally started to like her hair now that it reached all way down to her waist. (And she had never been good at braiding anyways.) 

***

Her mother was already waiting when Annabeth got to the dining room. She gestured for Annabeth to sit down in front of her, so she did. Athena began talking right away. 

"Athens will need a new ruler some day. That will be you. And after that we will need another one. That means you'll have to marry, and it should be soon. I want our people to know your husband before he becomes king. We will make the marrige a public feast, to celebrate that you are an adult know. Your birthday will be your wedding day. All this is already decided, however, you will get to choose who you marry."

That was better than Annabeth could have hoped for, she supposed. 

Then she realized it was less than a month until her seventeenth birthday, and she felt her shoulders slump. She didn't have anyone at all whom she could think to spend the rest of her life with. She didn't know many boys, she preferred to spend her free time reading. And other children had always acted strange around her since she was the princess, so she’d never really had friends.

Except for two years ago.

A boy named Luke Castellan used came by the library to see her. At first they liked to call it coincides when they ran in to each other, but after a while they learned exactly when the other was in the library every day and they began meeting. Often. Annabeth would've liked to marry Luke, even though the never did anything else but talk and discuss fighting strategics (just because Annabeth was a royalty and would never be going to war didn't mean she wasn't smart enough to plan one), but Luke was sent to war 18 months ago and she hadn't seen him since. She’d always suspected he saw her as a sister, so maybe that was for the best.

"Because you don't know anyone who would make a good prince, I have set up some dinners for you the upcoming days. Your first date is tonight," Athena continued, and before Annabeth had time to open her mouth to answer, she was out of the room.  
Pleasant mother-daughter talk. 

***

That evening maids came to Annabeth's chamber despite her protests. Apparently, the Queen had ordered that Annabeth should look as pretty as possible the upcoming days, and was not capable of making herself pretty enough, which meant she would not have any privacy at all. Lovely. 

When she walked to the garden where she would be eating with the boy her mother had picked out, she tried think of as many excuses for leaving early as she could. Then she dismissed those thoughts, she was after all going to have to marry someone, so she might as well give everyone a proper chance. Not that she wanted to, she liked her life as it was, but in the end she would do anything that made her mother happy. 

On second thought, maybe she wouldn't. The dinner was an absolute and total disaster. The boy she met with was a lord’s son, named Octavian Adela, and it took about 30 seconds for Annabeth to figure out that he was there for the mere possibility of getting to rule the Athens kingdom. Not that Annabeth thought anyone was going to show up with better intentions, but they could at least be smart enough to not be obvious about it. Besides, there was no way Annabeth would let go of control when she became queen, her mother had fought for this kingdom, and it was going to stay in the hands of the family. 

She and Octavian exchanged some polite phrases and had some unpleasant small talk, but except for that they were mostly quiet for the rest of the evening. After dessert Annabeth came up with an excuse to leave, and hurried back to her room. She changed into her night gowns and went to bed. Before she fell asleep, she sighed. It was going to be a long couple of days.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is just sort of a introduction chapter, the story will really begin in chapter two. 
> 
> Comment and tell me if you liked it/what could be better, I love getting feedback!


	2. Chapter

The following four days were just as bad. Annabeth had to get up inhumanly early to have breakfast with her mother, at which Athena told her about the wedding and dates and dresses and gods know what else, Annabeth couldn't pay attention. Her mind spun around how badly the date had gone the night before, and how the one she was having later that day probably was going to be even worse. 

After five hopeless dinners with dumb power seekers, Athena decided it was time to change tactics.

"This isn't working" she said at breakfast the day after another terrible dinner. Annabeth bit back a snarky comment about how that was obvious after the first two dinners. "We better get this done more effective, you'll want to know your future husband a bit before you get married, won't you?" Annabeth nodded.

"So what I'm thinking is a ball. Obviously not as big as the one for your wedding, but just a simple one to which everyone can attend. That'll make you meet a lot of people. After that we can set up some more dinners with boys you feel more comfortable around," her mother continued. Annabeth nodded slightly and said, "Sounds good." She didn't actually think it sounded very good, how was she supposed to find someone she liked among hundreds of people? But given the circumstances, it was as good  
a plan as any.

***

The ball took place only two days later. The summer weather was lovely, and the gates to the castle stood open to everyone. Annabeth had been prepared since the minute she woke up. She had gotten her hair trimmed, then it was made to an updo, her make up had been done over and over until it was absolutely perfect, and she wore the most stunning turquoise dress, with ribbons and pearls in gold. People had always told her she was beautiful, just like her mother, but when she entered the ball room and everyone was staring at her, she felt like it for the first time ever.

***

Annabeth went to the buffet table to pause after at least ten dances with different persons in a row. She was, despite herself, smiling. She had given up the thought of finding a future husband, and just enjoy herself, and she did. It was fun doing something, and she was good at dancing, so she was actually having a good time.

She took a piece of cake from the buffet and went to a corner of the ball room to take one minute to catch her breath before she went back to the dance floor. She stood there, watching everyone laughing and dancing.

Well, everyone except one boy who stood alone, looking very out of place with his dirty but fancy looking clothes and his messy black hair. Annabeth decided that he needed company and walked over to him.

He lifted his head and turned to her just before she opened her mouth to say hello. He studied her for a short moment, and she saw a shift in his eyes as he recognized her. He looked a little uneasy, but he didn't bow, which Annabeth wasn't very used to, but she liked it, the less formality the better. She felt like she recognized him too, but she couldn't for her life remember where from.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" Annabeth asked.

"Yes," the boy answered, looking like he wanted to be anywhere but there. "I should apologize for looking this I guess," he gestured to his dirty clothes, "I didn't realize it was a ball for you, I was expecting a less formal one." Annabeth noticed his accent. She didn't think she had heard it before.

"Oh, don't worry about it," Annabeth said and smiled. "You're not from Athens, are you?" If he was, he definitely should have known the ball was for her.

He shook his head. "I'm traveling, making businesses for my father. Thought I could use a night off," he explained.

Annabeth nodded. Then she looked curiously at him and said, "Why aren't you dancing? You should dance."

"Oh, um yeah," the boy said, looking around the room.

"Well?" Annabeth asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Um, who should I ask?"

She stared disbelieving at him. "Me, obviously," she said, laughing quietly at his cheeks as they turned pink.

"Of course," he mumbled. He shook his head and cleared his throat. "May I have this dance then?" he asked and offered his hand. Annabeth put her hand in his.

"You may."

***

The boy was a good dancer. They danced to song, after song, after song. While dancing, Annabeth couldn't help but stare at his face. He was all sharp angles, cheekbones, chin, nose. She felt like it should make him look older, but something in his eyes seemed so alive and innocent, and together with his messy hair it made him look about her age. She liked his eyes. First time you looked at them the looked green, but when you came closer the color of the ocean seemed like a more fitting description. They were green and turquoise, with some sprinkles of gold. Like her dress, she realized. That made her smile.

They kept dancing. They didn't say much, but it was a comfortable silence. They were actually really good together. Annabeth briefly noticed that everyone had stopped dancing to watch them, but she didn't mind. It felt like she was flying over the floor, like it had felt the time when she tried dancing for the first time and decided to become good at it. It was just her, the boy (who she now realized she still didn't know the name of), and the music. She loved it.

After so many dances she had lost count, a figure appeared in the corner of her eye. The Queen. She came to them and putted a hand on the boy's shoulder so they had to stop.

"Don't you think you should let someone else dance with the princess?" Athena asked the boy, voice so sweet it sounded deadly.

The boy raised his head high and tilted his chin slightly upward, just like Annabeth was taught to do when she was asked to do something she didn't necessarily liked. "Of course, Your Majesty," he said, more formal than she had seen him all night, and let go of Annabeth's hand. He turned to leave, but Annabeth grabbed his arm.

"You didn't tell me your name" she said, not wanting him to go just yet.

He smiled so bright she thought the sun would be jealous. "Percy."

 

That night, Annabeth fell asleep with a smile on her lips and a name appearing constantly in her mind. Percy. Something about him, something she couldn't quite point out, made her want to know more about him.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Athena was terrible late to breakfast. Annabeth waited at least 40 minutes before the queen stormed in and stood in front of her. Annabeth could practically touch the anger boiling from her mother. She quickly decided against talking, as that would probably make Athena even more furious. She was right.

"Do you have any idea what position you put me in by dancing with him that much?" Athena shouted. Annebeth jumped a bit, she hadn't been shouted at ever before, no one shouted at a princess. "The entire kingdom thinks we are giving up and sharing our lands with The Kingdom of Oceania. Like I would ever surrender. To that Poseidon scum of all kings. No way," she continued, and glared at Annabeth before she took a deep breath to continue. "But now, thanks to your little show, our people think I backed down, and accuse me for not being a strong leader enough, telling me I need a new king to rule with me." Athena looked even more furious than before.

Slowly, like syrup dripping, realization hit Annabeth. Dance, King Poseidon, the constant war between Athens and Oceania. Percy. His face so familiar, but only from paintings in books. Perseus Jackson, Crown Prince of Oceania, her future enemy if the war continued even when they took over the thrones. Of course a cute boy couldn't be only that. Was he there to spy? He had said he was here doing business for his father, so it wasn't impossible, rather very logical. Still, Annabeth had such a good time, she really hoped he just came to the ball because he wanted to.

"I didn't know he -" Annabeth started.

"Don't bother," Athena snapped. "I don't have time for any excuses, I need to fix this mess you put us in as fast as possible."

With that, she was out of the room, leaving Annabeth with a sincere "Sorry" on her tongue, and feeling horrible guilty. She knew how much her mother fought for being accepted as only ruler after the King, Annabeth's father died. She really didn't want to ruin that.

***

Annabeth spent the day in her room, thinking of ways to put things right and trying to push Percy's handsome face out of her brain. Neither worked very well. She just kept thinking about his smile, how she hoped it was meant for her and not just an act. She hated not knowing. She always had. When she didn't know something, she went to the library and read books and asked people about it until she found out what she wondered. That didn't work with people, and it annoyed her. Scared her maybe described it better, nothing certain like with science and history, but rather the choice of trusting someone or not. Yes, scary was the right word. She tried shaking all thoughts out of her head and grabbed a book and sat down in a chair by the fire.

She read until it was dark and she heard something outside her window. It sounded like someone whistling, the melody reminded her of something the bands at balls and parties used to play. Annabeth put her book aside, marking her page, and went to the window to look. All she could see was the garden, with all its exotic flowers and trees, almost glowing in the moonlight. Just as she decided she'd probably just imagined the sound, a shadow appeared from behind a bush. Annabeth opened her mouth to shout for the guards, but she saw the person raising a hand to wave. She squinted her eyes, trying to see who it was, it was way to dark, and the person came a little closer to the castle, so he stood directly in the light of the moon and stars. Of course it was him, of course it was Prince Perseus, and of course he grinned and gestured at her to come down. And of course she did.

Her whole brain screamed at her about how it was a bad idea as she changed from her night gown to another dress. She knew just how much of a bad idea it was and how much she could ruin if she got caught as she went down the corridors, grabbing a torch as she hurried. She just couldn't help it. She wanted to see him again so bad, the logical part of her brain just shut down.

***

Annabeth couldn't find him at first, she thought she had looked everywhere, and she was really tempted to call for him, but she didn't dare. That didn't matter though, Percy came out from behind a bush moments later, grinning like crazy. Her heart made some turns that she didn't want to acknowledge.

"I didn't want to risk getting caught," he said, brushing dirt from his clothes. His hair was as messy as yesterday, and his eyes just as beautiful, maybe even more in the moonlight.

Annabeth bit back a smile. "Why didn't you tell me who you are?" she demanded, keeping her voice low. She started walking away from the castle, to make sure no one could hear them. Percy shrugged.

"You wanted to dance with me, and -," he started, but Annabeth cut him off.

"I just offered because you looked lonely," she said.

"You didn't want to dance?" he asked raising an eyebrow and smirking. Gods, he looked good. 

"Well, yes," she muttered, hating that he was right, and hating what her stomach was doing. Butterflies.

"So anyway," Percy continued, "I figured you might not would've wanted to if you knew who I was."

"You could have told me after," she suggested.

"No one calls me Perseus, so I did," he said simply. "You know, leaving out the royalty part." She could relate to wanting to do that. 

***

They walked in silence for a long time, but it felt right. 

When they reached the very back of the garden, Percy sat down on the grass. Annabeth looked curiously at him, there were benches not far from them. He seemed to understand what she meant with her expression.

"Why not?" he answered her silent question.

"Because you'll get dirty?" she suggested.

"I already am."

"Fair enough." She sat down beside him. She wasn't allowed to wear the same dress twice anyway.

"Do you like being a prince?" she asked him after a moment, having to tilt her head upwards to look at him. She wondered how it was possible to look good from every angle. She wondered if he was aware he did.

"Sometimes," he said. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it again. "I mean," he said again, but pausing, trying to find the right words. "I always say I don't like it, but I don't think I would've liked to live any other way either. I'm born for this, and I can't change that." She understood so much what he was talking about, feeling so much the same way, but she didn't say anything, she didn't have to, so she just nodded.

"I wish the war would stop," Percy said when they had been silent for too long. Annabeth put her hand on his, stilling his tapping fingers.

"Me too," she whispered. There wasn't anything else they could say. She knew he was from the enemy's side, and for him, she was, but she trusted him. And when he pulled away his hand from hers to put his arm around her waist, she knew he trusted her too. She shifted closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. Before she fell asleep, she whispered again.

"Me too."

***

She woke up one time. She lay on her side, turned towards him.  
Her head fitting perfectly between his shoulder and chest.

His arm still around her, holding her like it was the most natural thing in the world. It felt like it.

They breathed in unison.

She had never felt so home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so that's it for this chapter! Leave a kudos or a comment and tell me what you thought <3


	4. Chapter 4

When Annabeth woke up next time the sun had rose. She was alone. It stung in her chest when she realized that Percy had left without saying goodbye, but she understood he had to get going. She sat up, and saw the day had already begun. People were walking in the gardens, some were in their horses on their way to work, and some sat by the benches having breakfast. She stood and brushed dirt of her dress as good as she could, which wasn't enough. She probably looked hideous, hair in a nest and dirty dress, and people would probably wonder what their princess was doing, sleeping on the ground, so she hurried inside, hoping not too many had seen her.

Just as she got inside the castle, she herd the clock tower. 10 o'clock already. She was late for her daily breakfast with her mother, so she decided against going back to her room to change. Maybe not very wise, but she had a cover story in her head.

"Where have you been?" Athena half shouted. "And what happened to your dress?" she said glaring.

"Sorry" Annabeth stammered. Then she cleared her throat and said, "I couldn't sleep last night, so I decided to take a walk. I must have fallen asleep."

Athena frowned at her, not quite buying the story, but she went along with it.   
"As the ball was completely unsuccessful, we'll have to keep up with the dinners," She told her. "Have you got anyone you would like to meet with?" Yes, Annabeth thought. She shook her head. She wanted to say yes.So badly.

"Then I'll set you up with some boys I think would make a good husband for you." 

Annabeth cursed herself for not having payed enough attention to other boys at the ball. Then again, it had been one of the best nights of her life with only Percy. She hated how they were from rival kingdoms, it could've worked.

Her heart raced. Did she just think of marrying him? She didn't even know if he had a girl in Oceanien waiting for him. Considering how handsome he was, he probably did. The thought made her extremely uncomfortable. She shouldn't care, they'd only met twice, but she did care. A lot. She wanted to ask her mother if she could meet him again. Before her better reasoning got to her brain, she opened her mouth.

"Do you think I could meet Prince Perseus again? You know, it could bring peace, if we, you know-" She couldn't find the right words. The probably weren’t any, she was going to be yelled at.

"Are you out of your mind?" Athena exclaimed. "I don't want peace, I want our lands and honor!" 

To that, Annabeth didn't have an answer. Arguing with her mother was pointless. Athena was very derterminated when she had her mind set on something. Annabeth just bowed her head and left. 

***

Percy came that night too. 

He didn’t give any indication he had. Maybe he knew Annabeth would stand by her window waiting for him to show up. 

She was fully dressed and down the stairs before he even had time to raise his hand. She was going so scare him from behind, but her panting gave her away.   
He turned around when she was a couple of meters away. Percy grinned at her. She felt herself smiling even bigger. 

“You were waiting for me,” he said. Annabeth just shrugged. She didn’t really know how to answer; “Yeah I know we’ve only met twice but I still consider you a good friend, actually my best friend since I don’t have any other, and I really wanted to meet you again” just didn’t sound good to her.

They started walking the same way as they had the day before. 

“Why did they have a ball for you?” Percy asked after a minute silence. “Was it your birthday? Oh Gods I should have brought you a gift.” He looked slightly horrified. It was so sweet Annabeth just about melted on the inside. 

“It was a ball for me to find a husband,” she sighed. 

Percy opened his mouth and then closed it as if the words had fallen out. “But you’re only, what?”

“Sixteen, seventeen in 3 weeks,” she said.

“Aren’t you way to young to marry?” he asked, sounding concerned. 

“My mother married when she was sixteen. I suppose she thinks I should follow her footsteps.” She felt tears coming on. She bit her lip, trying not to let it show, it wasn’t in a princess place to cry, but one damned tear escaped. Percy must’ve noticed, because suddenly his arms were around her. He pulled her close. Her head rested on his chest, and she felt more tears coming. She let them fall. Percy hugged her tighter. He held her long after she’d stopped crying.   
When he finally let her go, after checking about twenty times if she was okay, Annbeth decided they needed to get to know each other.   
“What about you?” she aked him. “How old are you?” 

“Eighteen.” 

“Are you married?” she blurted. She felt her cheeks flush. You did not ask someone you’d only met three times if they were married. Especially not if they were about your age and really handsome. that would make them belive you wanted to marry them. Although, she could do that. 

“No, I’m waiting for the right one. It may sound like whishfull thinking but I have to believe there is someone right for me, who could run Oceanien side by side with me. I could never do it by myself but I can’t bring myself to share it with someone I don’t love either, you know?” 

“Don’t your parents want you to get married?”

“Father does, but my mother tells me to follow my heart. I’m choosing to listen to her.”

“You are lucky,” Annabeth said and sighed. 

“I know,” he said. “I’m sorry, we’re going to talk about something else, I just have to know, when is the wedding?” 

“On my birthday.” 

He gasped, then shook his head and said, “Tell me something about yourself.” He was obviously trying to distract her, but she was grateful for it.

“I’m your everyday royalty, nothing to tell,” she said, giving a small ‘I’m fine’ smile. 

“That must be one of the biggest lies I’ve ever heard. And I’m a prince, I’ve heard many,” he said, “so tell me something. Anything.”

She walked over to a bench and sat down, her hands folded in her knee. Percy sat beside her. 

“Okay,” she began. She had no idea what to say. There wasn’t really anything special with her at all. What could he possibly want to know? “I like to read?” she said, but she sounded unsure. Percy noted that. Of course he did. He smiled reasurringly and said, “What else?”

She thought for a moment. “I have refused to have maids helping me out for as long as I can remember, which mother hates. It’s making me feel more ordinary, you know?” He nodded. “When I was eleven I wanted to learn sword fighting. I was told that wasn’t ladylike enough.” She crossed her arms and pouted, but Percy was starting to crack up, so she had to laugh too.

“My everyday royal, huh?” he asked raising an eyebrow when they had run out of laughter. Annabeth shrugged. 

Suddenly, Percy got compleatly silent. He pointed behind Annabeth, who turned to see a torch coming towards them. A guard must’ve heard them laughing. She cursed herself for not thinking straight when she was around Percy. She did in fact know there were guards erywhere, all the time, and they would get caught if they were too loud. Her mind spun with things that could happen if they were caught, each worse than the last. She was not going to decide who to marry that’s for sure. She did not even want to think what would happen to Percy. He would probably going to be accused for being a spy, and being from Oceania, his punishment would be his head. Probably after hours, or even days of toture. 

Annnabeth was not going to let that happen. 

She grabbed his hand as she stood, dragging him with her. “Run,” she whsipered. He was up in half a second. They ran hand in hand the opposite direction from the guard until Annabeth realized they would run faster if she let go, so she did. She missed his hand instantly. She wanted nothing more than grab it again, but that would slow them down. Repeating everything horrible that could happen to him in her head was the only thing that kept her from doing it. 

Annabeth had a hard time to keep up with Percy in her dress. It kept getting tangled with her legs, so she had to hold it up. (She was going to make it acceptable for women to wear pants too, when she became queen.) He stopped every 50 meters or so, waiting for her to caugh up. Once they were finally out of the gardens and at the very end of the castle. It seemed like the guard had lost them. 

Annabeth panted. That was the most she’d ran in years and years. It felt as if someone had stabbed her lungs with a knife, but it felt good. She began laughing. She laughed of relief, she laughed because she could only imagine the look on her mothers face if she saw her now, and most of all, she laughed because Percy was too. His face lit up when his lips began to part, and she could see his white teeth, just a little crooked, and his eyes suddenly lost every ounce of darkness. She wondered if he laughed at her, because she was so bad at running, or because her laughter sounded weird, but she didn’t thinnk it mattered. She felt better than she had in a long time, and Percy seemed genuine. She liked being around him, she liked him. And when he had calmed down enough to look at her, she wondered if the look on his face meant he liked her, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I am so, so sorry. I totally forgot about this story. Anyway, hopefully I'll post faster next time, hope you enjoyed it.


End file.
